Justin Shine’s ex-girlfriend, the mother of his two young children, wrote to friends that she will “never forgive or forget” what he is accused of doing to a 6-year-old girl. Shine, 26, faces charges he kidnapped, shackled and attempted to rape the girl in an apartment at the Hanover Woods complex on Franks Lane on Saturday.

Dennis Tatz and Fred Hanson

Justin Shine’s ex-girlfriend, the mother of his two young children, wrote to friends that she will “never forgive or forget” what he is accused of doing to a 6-year-old girl.

Shine, 26, faces charges he kidnapped, shackled and attempted to rape the girl in an apartment at the Hanover Woods complex on Franks Lane on Saturday.

Officers were doing a door-to-door search for the girl when she appeared after escaping her alleged abductor. She had been riding her bicycle in the complex and her mother called police to report her missing about a half hour after last seeing her Saturday afternoon.

Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy Cruz said the girl’s ankles had been shackled, and she had blood on her hands and legs. The leg shackles she had been wearing were attached by a chain, similar to the ones used when transporting prisoners, Cruz said.

Following a brief struggle, Shine was taken into custody. He appeared to have self-inflicted wounds, police said.

The girl was taken to a hospital, treated and released during the weekend, a spokeswoman for Cruz said today.

Shine was scheduled to be arraigned in Hingham District Court today.

Holly Hersh, Shine’s ex-girlfriend, wrote on her Facebook wall after his arrest Saturday that she won’t forgive him. She told WCVB-TV that she kicked Shine out of her Hanover Woods apartment about two weeks ago because he was using drugs and that he must have broken in Saturday while she was away. She said that their 7-year-old son is friends with the girl who was snatched this weekend. The couple also have a 3-year-old daughter.

Cruz and Hanover Police Chief Walter Sweeney praised the officers who found the youngster about a half hour after she had been reported missing. The girl led police to Hersh’s apartment, where she had been held, police said.

“A bad situation was prevented from being worse,” Cruz said Saturday.

Sweeney said there was no doubt the officers’ quick action “saved this girl’s life.”

The district attorney said he is not aware of any other incidents involving Shine.

A single mother of another young girl opened the door cautiously at her Hanover Woods apartment Sunday and didn’t want to be identified as she talked about Shine.

“He looked like a weirdo,” the 29-year-old woman. “I don’t know exactly how to explain it. He wasn’t approachable. He’s not someone I would want to be around.”

Hanover Woods, a cluster of five residential buildings and a management office off Route 53, is within walking distance of Hanover Mall. A wooded area surrounds the complex.

Another neighbor, who is married and the mother of a 6-year-old boy and another son nearly a year- old, called the incident disturbing.

“When I heard what happened, I thought it was the most disgusting thing to do to a child,” the 29-year-old woman, who didn’t know Shine, said. “Something like this strikes a chord with anyone who has children,” she said.

A 40-year-old former corrections office, who has lived at Hanover Woods for two years with his 13-year-old son, said nothing surprises him these days.

“I keep to myself,” he said. “I know the neighbors in my building and maybe one or two others. I keep my son close by. I make sure he has a curfew.”

A spokesman for Harbor Management in Lynn, which runs the complex, couldn’t be reached for comment.

Shine is scheduled for arraignment today in Hingham District Court on charges that also include assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and resisting arrest.

Reach Dennis Tatz at dtatz@ledger.com.

Reach Fred Hanson at fhanson@ledger.com.

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.

Original content available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license, except where noted.
Waynesboro Record Herald - Waynesboro, PA ~ 30 Walnut St. Waynesboro, PA 17268 ~ Privacy Policy ~ Terms Of Service